Donovan Campaign Manager Pleads Guilty

NEW HAVEN — The congressional campaign manager for former Speaker of the House Christopher Donovan pleaded guilty Friday to conspiracy charges for his role in soliciting campaign contributions in exchange for promises to kill legislation concerning roll-your-own tobacco stores.

Joshua Nassi, 34, of Fairfield, is facing a maximum of five years when he is sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Janet Bond Arterton on July 16. On Friday, Nassi pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to cause false statements from Donovan's campaign to be filed with the Federal Election Commission. He is free on $100,000 bail.

Nassi was one of eight people arrested last July following a federal investigation into how members of Donovan's campaign staff agreed to help kill legislation that would have hurt roll-your-own tobacco stores in exchange for campaign contributions.

The indictments alleged that Nassi and Robert Braddock Jr., the campaign's finance director, accepted more than $27,000 in political contributions to Donovan's campaign while promising to help make sure that the proposed legislation never got to a vote.

"I am deeply saddened at today's events in federal court," Donovan said in a written statement. "I trusted Josh Nassi and he disappointed not only me, but also the people he served as one of my advisers."

The straw donations were gathered by former corrections official Ray Soucy, who eventually wore a wire to gather evidence for federal investigators against others in the scheme. There are several conversations between Nassi and Soucy captured on the wire tap.

About two-thirds of the $27,500 that reached the campaign came from an FBI agent posing as a roll-your-own shop investor, law enforcement documents say. The FBI inserted two undercover agents into the investigation after Soucy began cooperating, according to court records and other sources.

In addition to the conspiracy charges, Nassi also was charged with accepting more than $10,000 in federal campaign contributions, the sources of which had been disguised.

In court, Nassi acknowledged that he knew that the names of people listed as contributors on the campaign finance reports were not the actual donors.

"I knew that contributions given to the campaign that were in the names of others and I allowed those donations to be submitted to the campaign knowing that they would be on a report that would be submitted to the FEC,'' Nassi said.

Nassi said he had reason to believe that those people whose names were used were reimbursed for their donations. Nassi did not mention Donovan's name when he was asked about his crimes.

Under the plea agreement, Nassi has the right to appeal if he receives a sentence of more than two years. The government also agreed not to pursue any further charges against him, raising the question as to whether the long-running investigation into Donovan is nearing its end.

Attorney William Bloss, who is representing Nassi, said that Nassi did not agree to testify against anyone else as part of his plea agreement.

"He has been willing to accept responsibility for his actions for more than a year,'' Bloss said. "He knows he made a mistake."

Donovan has denied any knowledge of the scheme and has not been charged. He lost the Democratic congressional primary to Elizabeth Esty.

Soucy, a former state prison guard and officer in the labor union that represents the guards, pleaded guilty to fraud and a campaign-reporting violation in July after agreeing to cooperate with authorities investigating the conspiracy. David Moffa, another former officer in the prison guard union, pleaded guilty in November to conspiring to cause a false campaign report.

Paul Rogers, one of the co-owners of the two Waterbury smoke shops, pleaded guilty in January to charges of fraud and causing phony reports of campaign contributions to be filed with federal election regulators. Daniel Monteiro pleaded guilty last month to making a contribution to the Donovan campaign while knowing that he would be reimbursed.

Earlier in the day, one of the principals in the roll-your-own tobacco store in Waterbury at the center of the scandal also pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges. Ben Hogan is facing a maximum of five years in prison when he is sentenced July 9.